Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
(a) A
licensee shall biennially renew his license by completing a form obtained from
the Board in advance of October 31 of every even-numbered year, and by paying
the required fee. The application shall indicate the following:
(1) Other states where the applicant is
licensed.
(2) Disciplinary action
taken against the applicant by the licensing boards in other states.
(3) A verdict of guilty, guilty plea or plea
of nolo contendere by the applicant to a felony, crime of moral turpitude or
crime related to the practice of osteopathic medicine in this or another
jurisdiction occurring within the 2 years immediately preceding
renewal.
(b) A penalty
fee as specified by §
25.231 (relating to schedule of
fees) will be imposed on a licensee who continued to practice without having
timely renewed his license. The licensee may also be subject to other criminal,
civil or administrative penalties.
(c) Proof of completion of 100 credit hours
of continuing medical education, including at least 2 hours of approved courses
in child abuse recognition and reporting in accordance with §
25.417(b)
(relating to child abuse recognition and reporting-mandatory training
requirement), in the preceding biennial period will be required for licensure
renewal for osteopathic physicians.
(1)
Beginning with the licensure renewal period commencing November 1, 2006, at
least 20 credit hours shall be completed in AOA category 1-A approved
activities. At least 12 credit hours shall be completed in Category 1 or
Category 2 approved activities in the area of patient safety and risk
management. Approved activities in the area of patient safety and risk
management may include topics such as improving medical records and
recordkeeping, reducing medical errors, professional conduct and ethics,
improving communications, preventative medicine and healthcare quality
improvement. The remaining credit hours shall be completed in any Category 1 or
Category 2 approved activities. Credit will not be granted for courses in
office management or practice building.
(2) Physicians shall retain official
documentation of attendance for 2 years after renewal, and shall certify
completed activities on a form provided by the Board for that purpose, to be
filed with the biennial renewal form. Official documentation proving attendance
shall be produced, upon Board demand, pursuant to random audits of reported
credit hours. Electronic submission of documentation is permissible to prove
compliance with this subsection. Noncompliance may result in disciplinary
proceedings under section 15(a)(6) of the act (63 P.S. §
271.15(a)(6)).
(3) The following exemptions apply for
certain physicians:
(i) A physician applying
for licensure in this Commonwealth for the first time shall be exempt from the
continuing medical education requirement for the biennial renewal period
following initial licensure.
(ii) A
physician holding a current temporary training license shall be exempt from the
continuing medical education requirement.
(iii) A retired physician who provides care
only to immediate family members shall be exempt from the continuing medical
education requirement.
(iv) A
physician who is on inactive status shall be exempt from the continuing medical
education requirement, except that a physician who is seeking to reinstate an
inactive or lapsed license shall show proof of compliance with the continuing
education requirement for the preceding biennium.
(4) A physician suspended for disciplinary
reasons is not exempt from the requirements of this section.
(5) Waiver of the requirements may be
permitted, as follows:
(i) The Board may
grant a hardship waiver of all or a part of the continuing medical education
requirement in cases of serious illness, military service or other good cause
provided that the public's safety and welfare will not be jeopardized by the
granting of the waiver.
(ii)
Requests for waiver must be made in writing, with appropriate documentation,
and include a description of circumstances sufficient to show why compliance is
impossible.
(iii) Waiver requests
will be evaluated by the Board on a case-by-case basis. The Board will send
written notification of its approval or denial of a waiver
request.
The provisions of this §25.271 issued under
section 16 of the Osteopathic Medical Practice Act (63 P.S. §
271.16); section 902(b) of the Health Care
Services Malpractice Act (40 P.S. §
1301.902(b)); amended under
sections 10(d) and 16 of the Osteopathic Medical Practice Act (63 P.S.
§§
271.10(d) and
271.16); amended under
section 910 of the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error Act
(40
P.S. §
1303.910).
This section cited in 49 Pa. Code §
25.605 (relating to biennial
renewal); and 49 Pa. Code §
25.906 (relating to biennial
renewal of genetic counselor license).
